Pray, praise, confess, and pray!

 

Sermon for Trinity 16, September 20, 2026

Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.  Amen.

James 5:13-20  ¹³Is anyone among you suffering?  He should pray.  Is anyone cheerful?  He should sing songs of praise.  ¹⁴Is anyone among you sick?  He should call the elders of the church, and they should pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.  ¹⁵And the prayer offered in faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up.  If he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.  ¹⁶So confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, in order that you may be healed.  The prayer of a righteous person is able to do much because it is effective.  ¹⁷Elijah was a man just like us.  He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.  ¹⁸Then he prayed again, and the sky gave rain, and the land produced its harvest.  ¹⁹My brothers, if anyone among you wanders away from the truth and someone turns him back, ²⁰let it be known that the one who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins. (EHV)

Pray, praise, confess, and pray!

Dear fellow redeemed,

            After Jesus finished praying one day, “one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray,’” (Luke 11:1) and Jesus taught them the prayer we know as the Lord’s Prayer.  When you study Jesus’ prayer, you soon realize that almost all of it is asking for the Lord to help our spiritual lives.  Only one petition asks for earthly things.  You might wonder why Jesus was so focused on our lives of faith, but the fact of the matter is Jesus didn’t come into this world to make earth a pleasant home.  Instead, Jesus’ whole purpose was to make it possible for us to dwell with Him forever in heaven.

Therefore, as we consider the text before us this morning, we see that following in His Lord’s footsteps, James is again encouraging us primarily toward the things that will bring people forgiveness and eternal life, while also, like Jesus, attending to our lives here on earth.  Therefore, we will consider Jame’s words that encourage us to Pray, praise, confess, and pray!

The letter of James is essentially the Holy Spirit instructing believers how to live in this troubled world.  It is not particularly strong in Gospel.  Rather, it is telling us how we as believing Christians should live in sanctification as we wait for the return of our Lord on Judgment Day.  Again, the focus is not on gaining a place in the kingdom of heaven, but how we might reflect our membership in that realm.  Furthermore, through James, the Spirit would have us be doing those things that encourage others to follow along on the path to heaven which is Jesus.

Three times, then, James simply says, “Pray.”  “Is anyone among you suffering?  He should pray.”  Now, that command comes not as something to be obeyed in order to force a better outcome.  Instead, he commands the suffering to pray because the Savior we follow and believe in has the authority and power to help us.  Furthermore, Jesus Himself invited us to come to Him in any need.

James wrote, “Is anyone among you sick?  He should call the elders of the church, and they should pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.”  As you all are well aware, we have a list of people to pray for in every bulletin.  Prayer requests come out from our synod and from friends both near and far away.  Again, we don’t pray to earn brownie points with God.  We pray because God encourages us to come to Him in every need.  He wants us to trust Him to provide everything we need for body and life, including for our eternal lives.  This is why Jesus came into the world and why He healed so many who came to Him in need of healing while He lived among us.

Now, we must call attention to the instruction to anoint with oil.  Some want to make this a talisman of sorts as if it is our anointing that moves God to heal.  However, we must understand that applying olive oil (the literal instruction here) is merely telling us to use the appropriate medical care of the time.  When James wrote this, olive oil was commonly used for many medicinal purposes.  Consequently, we take this to mean that the Lord desires us to make use of the modern medical care He has provided to us through the various channels.  The medicines, skills, techniques, and devices of modern medicine are just as much God’s gifts to us as any other skill or blessing.  Yet, that doesn’t preclude prayer.  Numerous studies are showing that medical care in general is much more successful when accompanied by prayer.

At the same time, there is a greater purpose for our prayers on behalf of the afflicted.  James wrote, “And the prayer offered in faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up.  If he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.”  Prayers offered by faithful believers go a long way toward helping the sick person’s faith.  As we put our trust in Jesus through prayer, our faith is also being tempered into stronger faith.  Which, of course, leads to salvation, eternal life, and resurrection from the dead come Judgment Day. 

Just as the young man of Nain in our Gospel lesson rose up when Jesus spoke the simple command, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” so too will we, who have been forgiven of all sin, joyfully rise when the trumpets sound as Jesus returns in glory to judge the living and the dead.  Likewise, as Christian believers, we pray that the sick individual will be strengthened in faith through our sharing of the Gospel so that whether he gets better or dies, eternal life will be granted through faith in Jesus.

“So confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, in order that you may be healed.”  The first part, we readily confess but some may wrongly assume that the healing is always in this life and then be disappointed if that does not turn out to be the case.  In our weekly church services, we confess our sins and pray for each other.  We do so not to gain a reward here on earth but in the sure hope of everlasting life we are promised through faith in Jesus.  Just as St. John explained in his first letter, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  If we say we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar, and his Word is not in us.” (1 John 1:9-10)

We then come to perhaps the most compelling statement, and maybe most misunderstood: “The prayer of a righteous person is able to do much because it is effective.”  There are some who have abused this passage to accuse a believer of not praying properly or enough if God’s answer to our prayer is “No.”  Others wrongly guess that our righteousness accomplishes the good.  However, the Lord does not operate as a vending machine for our every wish or desire.  Rather, our prayers are effective, because our God is powerful and loving.  Therefore, whenever we pray to the Lord, and He encourages us to come to Him in every need, we can be confident that God’s answer is exactly best for the situation at hand, whether we can see the full outcome or not. 

Whenever it may seem like we haven’t been given what we want, it is certain that God in His infinite wisdom knows there is a better way.  Perhaps our suffering is being used to strengthen faith in us or someone else.  Maybe answering prayers exactly according to our wishes would lead to unexpected harm for us or others.  Finally, we need to remember and trust God when He says, “Certainly my plans are not your plans, and your ways are not my ways,” declares the Lord.  Just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my plans are higher than your plans.” (Isaiah 55:8-9)  At the same time, we are assured by the Holy Spirit, “If God is for us, who can be against us?  Indeed, he who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also graciously give us all things along with him?” (Romans 8:31-32)

There is one short part I have skipped thus far.  As he told us to pray, James also inserted the advisement, “Is anyone cheerful?  He should sing songs of praise.”  It is a reminder to the sanctified believer to give thanks and praise to God for the multitude ways He blesses us.  It is so very common for the old man in us to focus more on the problems of this life.  The squeaky wheel gets the grease, so to speak.  Our daily lives and social media give multiple proofs that people in general are complainers who focus more on minor irritations than the great blessings God pours out on us daily. 

Yet, no matter our status in life, whether healthy or sick, rich or poor, powerful or insignificant in daily life, the greatest joy ever given is Jesus Christ crucified for sinners.  Through Jesus, all of our sins, shortcomings, faults, and shame have been removed from us and the guilt paid for with His blood.  And through Jesus, the righteousness we need to enter heaven has been put over us through the washing and Word of Baptism, covering all our imperfections so that we are welcome in God’s presence forever.  May we never forget God’s grace to us in Jesus.

The letter of James concludes rather abruptly.  There is no typical closing remark or blessing so common among letters of his time.  At the same time, in this closing part, we see how important it is to God that the sinner come to faith in Jesus.  The apostle wrote, “My brothers, if anyone among you wanders away from the truth and someone turns him back, let it be known that the one who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”  This is the motivation for all of us to demonstrate our love of God and our neighbors through how we serve our fellow sinners. 

The writer points us back to God’s Word, the ultimate source of all truth and pleads for us to do everything in our power to stay connected to it and to turn those who have strayed back to the truth.  This is why we gather around the Word of God.  This is why we send missionaries out into the world.  It is why we practice Church discipline.  This is why we want to draw others into the Church, not just to count bigger numbers but rather, so that more and more people may come to know Jesus and the righteousness and forgiveness He has won for all.  St. John wrote:

“Because God is love, this is how God’s love for us was revealed: God has sent his only-begotten Son into the world so that we may live through him.  This is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.  Dear friends, if God loved us so much, we also should love one another.” (1 John 4:8-11) 

Thus, the apostle James brings us the Holy Spirit’s encouragement that we Pray, praise, confess, and pray!  Amen.

Now to him, who is able, according to the power that is at work within us, to do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever!  Amen.

Our faithful Lord answers your prayers.

 

Sermon for Trinity 15, September 13, 2026

Our faithful Lord answers your prayers.

Dear children of the Living God,

St. John, in his greeting to the members of the seven churches in the province of Asia: (Revelation 1:4) wrote, “To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His own blood and made us a kingdom and priests to God His Father—to Him be the glory and the power forever.  Amen.” (Revelation 1:6)  Today, this serves as both my greeting to you and as a reminder that Jesus has made us people of God’s kingdom and priests with the privilege of intercession with God.  Our sermon text celebrates that marvelous privilege that allows us to go to God, the Creator of heaven and earth, with any need, want, or care with full assurance that Our faithful Lord answers your prayers.

We read King David’s psalm in the name of our dear Savior, who gives the words their power:

Psalm 145:1-2,13b-21  A song of praise.  By David.  ¹I will exalt you, my God, the King, and I will bless your name forever and ever.  ²Every day I will bless you, and I will praise your name forever and ever. … The Lord is faithful to all his words and merciful toward all he has made.  ¹⁴The Lord lifts up all who fall, and he supports all who are bowed down.  ¹⁵The eyes of all look eagerly to you, and you give them their food at the proper time.  ¹⁶You open your hand, and you satisfy the desire of every living thing.  ¹⁷The Lord is righteous in all his ways and merciful toward all that he has made.  ¹⁸The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.  ¹⁹He grants the desire of those who fear him.  He hears their cry and saves them.  ²⁰The Lord watches over all who love him, but he will destroy all the wicked.  ²¹My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord.  Let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever. (EHV)

Though David lived a thousand years before Jesus entered this world as a babe in the manger, David lived his life, and was saved for eternal life, through his faith in that promised Savior and Redeemer.  It is because of his faith in the Promised One that God blessed David so richly.  It is also David’s faith in that Promised Redeemer through which the Lord rescued him from the condemnation his sins deserved. 

The same should be said about all of us.  We too have many condemnable sins and shortcomings that had to be removed before we could stand before God in peace.  Yet, we too are given forgiveness, peace, and eternal life through faith in the Savior who entered this world as a tiny babe in a manger, lived a peasant’s life in faithful holiness for us while teaching God’s Word and promises to a stubborn people, then being falsely accused Jesus bore all our sins to condemnation and death on a cross. 

In one of the more reassuring passages you might ever hear, David wrote, “The Lord is faithful to all his words and merciful toward all he has made.”  This is the truth that allowed David to go out in battle against giants and enemy forces far larger than his own.  As a boy this confidence kept David in the field when his father’s flocks were attacked by lion or bear.  Knowing that his heavenly Father has his best interests at heart, David could go against the enemy without debilitating fear.  Now, that isn’t to say he never trembled.  Any of us might get nervous in the middle of the fight, but remember David’s confident words as he approached Goliath, “You come against me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord of Armies, the God of the ranks of Israel, whom you have defied.  Today the Lord will hand you over to me.” (1 Samuel 17:45-46) 

To Goliath, that sounded like a ridiculous boast.  Even David’s brothers likely expected their little brother to be annihilated.  But, what did David have that Goliath would never know?  David had the Lord God at his side.  Before this battle, God had anointed David to be the next king of Israel.  Therefore, David wasn’t being reckless when he fought against Israel’s enemies.  Instead, he was taking up the position of trust God intended for him.  Likewise, God wants us to trust Him in everything.  No, that doesn’t mean God has chosen us to go into battle or cut off a giant’s head.  Rather, because Jesus has already won the victory that David’s victories foreshadowed, our Savior sends us out into the world on a different mission—not to make a kingdom by force, but rather to spread the message of peace and forgiveness that builds God’s kingdom of grace.

You see, God’s plan was always to reconcile the world to Himself in Jesus.  The very first promise given after Adam and Eve sinned was that the son of the woman would crush the devil and his rebellion, but at a cost.  The promise was repeated for us through the Children of Israel and their history.  The Lord showed Himself time and again as their Rescuer and Redeemer.  He was their guide and their hope for eternal life.  Israel’s history also shows us God’s faithfulness in judging evil.  Whoever refuses God’s mercy will suffer His wrath, but that is not for us to carry out.  Rather, when Jesus returns to judge the world, those things will be sorted out for eternity.

In the meantime, David reminds us that just as God continually demonstrated His loving concern for the Israelites before Jesus entered the world, so He now extends His love to all the people on earth.  Concerning Jesus’ mission to save sinners, God the Father declared, “It is too small a thing that you should just be my servant to raise up only the tribes of Jacob and to restore the ones I have preserved in Israel, so I will appoint you to be a light for the nations, so that my salvation will be known to the end of the earth.” (Isaiah 49:6)  God faithfully delivered on His promise to send a Savior.  God faithfully delivered on His promise to rescue us from sin, death, and the devil.  In the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, we receive sure and certain proof that by faith we too will receive everlasting life.

David also had the Lord’s ear.  So, what does this mean for our prayers?  It means that not only does God provide everything we need for body and life, but He promises that He hears our prayers and that Our faithful Lord answers your prayers.  James wrote, “The prayer of a righteous person is able to do much because it is effective.” (James 5:16)  The righteous person is one who has been declared righteous through the gift of faith in Christ Jesus.  His or her prayers are powerful and effective not because of what is in us, or what we do or say, but because the One to whom we pray both hears our prayers and has both the will and power to answer them.

David wrote, “The eyes of all look eagerly to you, and you give them their food at the proper time.  You open your hand, and you satisfy the desire of every living thing.  The Lord is righteous in all his ways and merciful toward all that he has made.”  Because He is good, faithful, and kind, God sustains the world and every creature in it.  Likewise for mankind, whether people believe in Him or not, God continues to provide much for their daily lives in the hope that they will turn to Him in faith.

On the other hand, God refuses to hear the prayers of those who deny Him.  Every day, and in every tragic event, a call to pray goes out.  Pray to your god, is often the plea.  Yet, idols don’t hear; neither do they see the troubles that surround us.  They have no hands to help or feet to come running to the aid of anyone, and the devil through whom all idols come about is only seeking our destruction.  Consequently, God declares to the unrepentant people, “I am the Lord; that is my name.  I will not give my glory to another, nor my praise to idols.” (Isaiah 42:8)

But to those people who believe in the Triune God, David wrote, “The Lord is righteous in all his ways and merciful toward all that he has made.  The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.”  God’s justice demanded that sin be paid for with death.  Therefore, so that many who deserved eternal condemnation might be rescued from that everlasting gloom, God sent His Son to redeem and save us.  Jesus paid the debt of sin for the whole world, and those who are brought to believe in Him will be saved.  In fulfillment of David’s assurance here, Jesus declared to His people, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)  Then, after His resurrection from the grave, Jesus promised, “Surely I am with you always until the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)  Indeed, Our faithful Lord answers your prayers.

In his praise, David continued to recount the goodness of our God singing, “He grants the desire of those who fear him.  He hears their cry and saves them.  The Lord watches over all who love him, but he will destroy all the wicked.”  These words continue a theme that runs strongly throughout the Scriptures, telling of God’s infinite mercy and kindness to those He calls to faith.  At the same time, those who reject the One who is our Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier will suffer for their arrogant defiance.  God earnestly desires to provide all good things to the people He created.  However, once sin entered the world, many people refuse God’s love and mercy, and in their rejection of God, many have embraced Satan’s hatred for God’s people.  However, by rejecting the Savior God sent to redeem all people from the devil’s grip, the unrepentant will receive the due reward for their rebellion against the God who loved the world through His Son.

For you and me today, however, we can go about our days with the same confidence David demonstrates in this psalm.  We should have complete confidence in God’s will and ability to care for us in every need.  More than that, though, we are especially assured that Jesus lived, died, and rose again so that we might be delivered from eternal punishment and despair, for He has paid the price to set us free from sin.  On top of that, by sending His Spirit in Word and Sacrament, the Lord our God has brought faith into our hearts and lives, so that regardless of circumstances, whether richer or poorer, in sickness or in health, in persecution or time of peace, we will stand with King David declaring, “My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord.  Let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.”  Triumphant unto life everlasting through faith in Jesus we remain, because Our faithful Lord answers your prayers.  Amen.

Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you faultless in the presence of His glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, be glory, majesty, power, and authority through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all time, now, and to all eternity.  Amen.

Prepare yourself to proclaim the Lord’s death.

 

Sermon for Trinity 14, September 6, 2026

The God of love and peace will be with you.  Amen.

1 Corinthians 11:23-32  ²³For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night when he was betrayed, took bread, ²⁴and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.”  ²⁵In the same way, after the meal, he also took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new testament in my blood.  Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”  ²⁶For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.  ²⁷Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the Lord’s body and blood.  ²⁸Instead, let a person examine himself and after doing so, let him eat of the bread and drink from the cup.  ²⁹For if anyone eats and drinks in an unworthy way because he does not recognize the Lord’s body, he eats and drinks judgment on himself.  ³⁰Because of this, many among you are weak and sick, and quite a few have fallen asleep.  ³¹But if we judged ourselves, we would not be undergoing judgment.  ³²However, when we undergo judgment, we are being disciplined by the Lord so that we may not be condemned with the world. (EHV)

Prepare yourself to proclaim the Lord’s death.

Dear fellow redeemed,

            What do you do to prepare yourself for a feast?  Imagine you are a college student away from home, and the food at the cafeteria is good, but it’s definitely not home cooking, and now your heading home for Thanksgiving dinner at Grandma’s house.  Can you just imagine all the delightful things that are on the menu when you get there?  Do you remember your favorite pie, or how delicious the whole house will smell as you walk through the door?  Given those memories and the joy of being together with family after your time away, what do you do to prepare?

Now, the question isn’t what is your grandmother, mother, or other host doing to prepare, but what should you be doing?  Will you fast that day until the big meal?  Will you get all cleaned up and dressed in your best for the reunion?  Are you trying to decide what to eat first?  Do you worry whether you will be welcome with everyone else there?  I suppose this  illustration will limp more than a little, but as we prepare for the feast of a lifetime, Prepare yourself to proclaim the Lord’s death.

On our menu this morning is the Lord’s Supper, and generations have wondered how best they should prepare to partake of this holy meal.  Sometimes, portions of the Church have insisted that you should fast before eating and drinking the bread and wine.  Most of us would say it is highly recommended that we clean our consciences with repentance before partaking of Jesus’ body and blood in this meal.  Therefore, let’s take some time this morning to see what makes this meal so special, and then what Paul means when telling the people to eat and drink in a worthy manner.

The first thing that is made clear through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is that to pretend that this Supper is anything but both bread and wine and body and blood is to make the Triune God a liar.  Jesus’ words could not be clearer.  When He says “This is,” we simply have to take it to mean it really is.  Furthermore, another statement from our God couldn’t be any clearer: “If anyone eats and drinks in an unworthy way because he does not recognize the Lord’s body, he eats and drinks judgment on himself.”  This is one of the big reasons why we practice closed communion.  We don’t want anyone who might be unsure whether Jesus’ body and blood really is consumed in, with, and under the bread and wine to fall into judgment.

Here, God’s prophecy through Isaiah stands out.  The Lord declared, “On this mountain the Lord of Armies will prepare for all peoples a banquet of rich food, a banquet of aged wines, with the best cuts of meat, and with the finest wines.  On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that covers all peoples, the burial cloth stretched over all nations.  He has swallowed up death forever!” (Isaiah 25:6-8)  If you think Thanksgiving dinner at Grandma’s house was something really special, let me tell you, it can’t hold a candle to what Jesus has prepared for us.  In this prophecy, the Lord uses the picture of a royal banquet to teach us the treasure that is served to us in His Supper.

But, what does that mean?  In this type of comparative prophecy, the Lord isn’t speaking about material food that you could pick up at the grocery store.  The food and wine stand in for what is really prepared by the Lord of Armies, and that is righteousness, forgiveness, salvation, and peace.  This is what Jesus offers us in His holy Supper.  Remember what Jesus said when He instituted this banquet feast; “He took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it all of you, for this is my blood of the new testament, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” (Matthew 26:27-28)  Thus, what are we receiving in the Lord’s Supper?  We receive bread and wine, but along with those earthly elements, we receive by sacramental miracle, Jesus’ true body and blood, the glorified elements of the body and blood He sacrificed to satisfy the demands of the law.

What this all means is that each time we come to the Lord’s table, He serves the holy meal He has prepared with all the love of God poured into each morsel.  In these fine foods, yes we receive bread and wine, but we also receive forgiveness of all sins, the body and blood of life, peace with God, and the promise of an eternal home in heaven.  Though to our mortal tongues, this food might taste ordinary or even rather bland, it is but a foretaste of the wedding banquet of the Son of God through which we who believe in Him will be united with God in joy and peace and everlasting harmony in which no one will ever again suffer sorrow, pain, illness, death, nor sin.

Now that we have established that the Lord’s Supper is truly a banquet made in heaven for those who believe in the Son, how are we to prepare for the meal.  By that, I am not concerned with who bakes the bread, or who sets up the communion trays.  Neither do we need to insist on a certain brand of wine, because the real food is Jesus and the forgiveness He won for us on the cross.

So, how should we prepare ourselves?  Paul wrote, “Whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the Lord’s body and blood.  Instead, let a person examine himself and after doing so, let him eat of the bread and drink from the cup.”  How are we to examine ourselves to see whether we are worthily prepared?  Martin Luther outlined worthy advice in the catechism.  “Before coming to the Lord’s Table we should examine ourselves to see:

Whether we truly repent of our sins,

Whether we believe in Jesus Christ as our Savior,

Whether we believe that He gives us His true body and blood for the forgiveness of our sins, and Whether we have the sincere desire, with the aid of God the Holy Spirit, to amend our sinful lives.”

Imagine attending Thanksgiving dinner at your parents’ or grandparents’ home yet demanding that they prove they really are who they say they are.  Imagine insisting that the good food they have prepared for you isn’t fit for you to eat.  Imagine throwing that beautiful, delicious food against the wall in a rage.  That is about how a person is acting who denies what Jesus says about this meal.  No wonder Paul says eating or drinking unworthily brings judgment on the person.

Still, what if I am loaded down with sin, guilt, and shame, dare I come to partake of this holy meal?  If it is your intent to boldly continue in those sins without repentance then, of course, no, don’t waste your time.  However, if you are coming to communion sorrowing for those sins and repenting before your God, and pleading for His mercy, grace, and help in correcting the sinful ways, then by all means, this is exactly where you want to be, because Jesus prepared this feast to show you that He really, truly, loved you all the way to the cross, to death, to hell, and to victory over the devil, sin, and death.

Paul wrote, “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”  This Supper is often called the Eucharist, which is a fancy way of saying it is a meal of thanks.  By trusting Jesus’ words and believing that His true body and blood is provided in, with, and under the bread and wine, and that along with this holy meal, we also receive forgiveness of all sin, life, and eternal salvation, we are giving thanks to the Savior who loved us with an unending love.  And by our active trust in His Word and partaking of His body and blood, we are telling the world around us of the great love and mercy God has shown us through His beloved Son, Jesus Christ.

Dear friends, though the world around us may mock and deride Jesus’ words as pure fantasy, you and I have a Savior who would never deceive us, nor would He ever let us down.  By offering His holy body and blood as the sacrifice of the Lamb of God in our place, Jesus has won for us the forgiveness of all our sins and peace with His Father in heaven.  The gates to that heaven are open to all who believe in Jesus, and in the Sacrament of the altar, we receive a foretaste of the heavenly banquet that Jesus has prepared to feed and care for us for all eternity.  Partake of that holy meal with full confidence in Jesus’ love and in the sacrifice He made so that you are counted as holy and pure in God’s eyes.  Coming before the Lord with trust in His Word, you Prepare yourself to proclaim the Lord’s death.  Amen.

To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his own blood and made us a kingdom and priests to God his Father—to him be the glory and the power forever.  Amen.

Believe and you will see the glory of God.

 

O Lord, we are gathered in sorrow, yet not as those who have no hope.  We thank You for all the blessings bestowed on our brother, now fallen asleep and for all the blessings given through him.  But most of all, we thank You for making him Your dear child by faith in Jesus Christ.  Give us to have that same trust in Jesus always.  We ask this all in Christ’s holy name.  Amen.

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

For our words of comfort, we read of Jesus’ love in the Gospel of John 11:28-44

          After she said this, Martha went back to call her sister Mary.  She whispered, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.”  ²⁹When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him.  ³⁰Now Jesus had not yet gone into the village, but was still where Martha met him.  ³¹The Jews who were with Mary in the house consoling her saw that she got up quickly and left.  So they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to weep there.  ³²When Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”  ³³When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and troubled.  ³⁴He asked, “Where have you laid him?”  They told him, “Lord, come and see.”  ³⁵Jesus wept.  ³⁶Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”  ³⁷But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?”  ³⁸Jesus was deeply moved again as he came to the tomb.  It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it.  ³⁹“Take away the stone,” he said.  Martha, the dead man’s sister, told him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, because it has been four days.”  ⁴⁰Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”  ⁴¹So they took away the stone.  Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you heard me.  ⁴²I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.”  ⁴³After he said this, he shouted with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”  ⁴⁴The man who had died came out with his feet and his hands bound with strips of linen and his face wrapped with a cloth.  Jesus told them, “Loose him and let him go.” (EHV)

Believe and you will see the glory of God.

Dear friends of Jim Munson, and especially you, his family: Sandra, Jeremy, Josh and Jill, Jason and Kristina, Sadie and Joe, Mother Phyllis, grandchildren and spouses, great-grandchildren, and all the rest of your family,

The wisest man who ever lived tells us that there is a time to live and a time to die, a time to weep and a time to rejoice.  The odd thing is that all four of these things come together in a funeral.  For those of us still living, who have known Jim and will miss him, for those of you who were so intimately connected with him, this moment feels exceedingly painful.  At the same time, through our tears but knowing that Jim believed in Jesus as his Savior, we are just as exceedingly joyful that Jesus has now welcomed Jim into the glory of eternal life in heaven.

It is thought that King Solomon wrote the words of Ecclesiastes toward the end of his life as he came to realize that no matter how fabulous or how horrible things seemed in this life, whether rich or poor, powerful or oppressed, life does come to an end and we have no ability to change that.  In much of the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon, who had lived in luxury beyond imagination and with great power in his position, sounds a little depressed.  The truth is, however, that Solomon came to realize that there is something so much greater than anything life in this broken world could offer.

Now, in our text from John’s gospel, we are presented with the account of the raising of Lazarus from the dead.  Here, we see the full gamut of life.  A brother loved by his sisters, surrounded by a host of consoling friends, and a Lord who is far more powerful than they at the time realized.  And though we meet a host of the living and grieving, we meet death, and we are reminded that death is the way of the world.  Because sin entered our world, we all are subject to death and to its terror.

We see both Mary and Martha react in the same way when Jesus came to their mourning; they accused Jesus of failing them.  Both said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”  Perhaps, more than a few of us have felt the same way; if God had intervened, we wouldn’t be here this morning.  The reality, though, is that Jesus stayed away when the sisters first sent messengers to Him asking for Jesus to come and heal Lazarus.  Jesus stayed away because His Father had a greater purpose for Lazarus’s death.  Jesus stayed away until Lazarus was dead so that the disciples and the world could see that Jesus has power over death.  That would be shown most clearly when Jesus rose from the grave after His own death on the cross, but here we see that Jesus has the power to raise us, too, and to fulfil what He told Martha, Believe and you will see the glory of God.

Solomon tells us that there is a time and place for everything under the sun.  Mary and Martha thought Jesus should have taken the time to come and heal their brother.  It is common for us to pray that God intervene to heal our loved ones, and believe me, many have been praying for Jim to be healed.  However, everything must happen according to God’s time and decision for indeed God is both the Giver of life, and the God who calls us out of this life.

Now, that doesn’t mean we can know why God didn’t intervene in Jim’s illness and give us what we would call a positive answer to our prayers.  I can only tell you the reason for Lazarus’s death because the Bible gives us that information.  At the same time, I can promise you that God truly did answer our prayers by taking Jim out of this world of sorrow and pain so that, fully restored in body and soul, he may dwell in the glory and peace of heaven.  Through the prophet, Isaiah, God declares, “The righteous one perishes, but no one takes it to heart.  Men of mercy are being taken away, but no one understands that the righteous one is being spared from evil.  He will enter into peace.  They will rest on their beds.  He is walking in his uprightness.” (Isaiah 57:1-2)

This is the Christian faith and the trust the Holy Spirit had worked in Jim through baptism and the hearing of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  The Bible tells us that we are all sinners who need a Savior.  Our experience in life tells us the same thing.  Every death is a demonstration that evil entered our world and brought us under the condemnation of the law and the bands of death.

Now some, in the midst of this pain, might surmise that God doesn’t care about us.  That simply isn’t true.  In fact, the Bible says, “Precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of His saints.” (Psalm 116:15)  We see that in our text in the reaction Jesus had to Lazarus’s death and the pain it caused His friends.  “When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and troubled.”  Death troubled Jesus, and in fact, stirred up some anger in His belly.  Jesus hated death and the trouble and sorrow it causes us, just as He hated sin and the devil’s accusations that so torment us.  Thus, “Jesus wept.”  He wept for the grief of the mourners.  Jesus wept because He felt the pain of their loss.  He wept because He loves us.  Therefore, Believe and you will see the glory of God.

In Jesus’ emotions that day, we also see how urgently Jesus desired to fulfill the main purpose of the Bible which is to show us our Savior—A Redeemer sent by God to rescue us from the chains of the deceiver who led mankind astray in the beginning and accuses God of being our enemy.  You see, as Solomon said, there is a time for everything under the sun, and at the appropriate time according to God’s plan, God sent His Son into the world to live perfect holiness on our behalf, but then also, to take upon His completely innocent and perfect self, the guilt and shame and condemnation for all of our sins, for Jim’s sins, and for the sins of the world.  Bearing all the guilt of the human race, Jesus made Himself the ultimate sacrifice that would set us free from the curse of sin and the devil’s control.  Therefore, because our just condemnation has been accomplished in Jesus’ death, God now counts everyone who believes in Jesus as righteous.

Because Jesus died on a cross to pay for Jim’s sins, and because Jesus rose triumphantly from the grave victorious over the devil and death, we can now have full confidence that because Jim believed in Jesus as his Savior, he now sees the glory of God.  Never again will Jim suffer pain, or sorrow, or illness.  Never again will sin trouble him.  And likewise, because almost no one leaves this troubled world without going through death, not even Jesus, there will come a day, when you and I who also believe in Jesus will be taken out of this cruel world and when we see Jim in heaven, it will be to him as though not a moment has passed. 

The people in our gospel account, including Lazarus, eventually had to face death.  Though Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead that day, it wasn’t the end of his story on earth.  Though the Bible doesn’t tell us the story of the rest of their earthly lives, or how they died, it does proclaim the future story for each believer in Jesus.  Jesus declared, “The Father loves the Son and has put everything in his hands.  The one who believes in the Son has eternal life.” (John 3:35-36)  Jesus also promised His followers, “I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you. … Because I live, you also will live.” (John 14:18-19)

God’s Word also confirms for us that physical death is not the end, for we too will be raised from the dead for life everlasting.  Just as Jesus commanded, “Lazarus, come out!”  And, the man who had died came out.”  Likewise, the Holy Spirit tells us through the writing of St. Paul, that on the last day, “The Lord himself will come down from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.  Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them, to meet the Lord in the air.  And so we will always be with the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)  In that moment on Judgment Day, all those who died in Jesus will be raised from the dead, fully restored and glorified, and the bands of death will be removed forever.

My friends, today we mourn the passing of a loved one and friend.  Today, our eyes may be wet with tears, but the day is coming when, just as Jim is now enjoying the peace of heaven, so we too will experience personally the salvation of our Lord Jesus forever.  At that time which only God knows, we will experience what Jim now sees, just as John excitedly reported in his Revelation, “Look!  God’s dwelling is with people.  He will dwell with them, and they will be his people.  God himself will be with them, and he will be their God.  He will wipe away every tear from their eyes.  There will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain, because the former things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:3-4)

Toward the end of his life, the apostle, John, was given a vision of our place in glory.  He reported,

After these things I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing in front of the throne and of the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and with palm branches in their hands.  They called out with a loud voice and said: “Salvation comes from our God, who sits on the throne, and from the Lamb.”  All the angels stood around the throne, the elders, and the four living creatures.  They fell on their faces before the throne and worshipped God, saying: “Amen.  Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and might belong to our God forever and ever.  Amen.” (Revelation 7:9-12)

In light of all the promises we are given by God, who gave His Son into death and resurrection so that we might live, we confidently say, Believe and you will see the glory of God.  Amen.

The peace of God, established and won for you and for all by the sacrifice of God’s own precious Son, be with you always to the very end of the age.  Amen.

Christ’s blood cleanses our consciences.

 

Sermon for Trinity 13, August 30, 2026

Now may the God of hope fill you with complete joy and peace as you continue to believe, so that you overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.  

Hebrews 9:6-14  ⁶After these things had been furnished in this way, the priests would always enter the first room of the tent to perform their ministries.  ⁷But only the high priest would enter the second section of the tent, once each year, and not without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people committed in ignorance.  ⁸By this the Holy Spirit indicates that, while the first room of the tent existed, a way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed.  ⁹This tent is a picture pointing to the present time.  Since it is only a picture, the gifts and sacrifices that are brought there are not able to clear the conscience of the worshipper.  ¹⁰They are only bodily regulations about foods, drinks, and various washings, which were in force until the time of the new order.  ¹¹But when Christ appeared as the high priest of the good things that were coming, he went through the greater and more complete tent, which was not made by human hands (that is, it is not part of this creation).  ¹²He entered once into the Most Holy Place and obtained eternal redemption, not by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood.  ¹³Now if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkled on those who were unclean, sanctifies them so that their flesh is clean, ¹⁴how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works, so that we worship the living God? (EHV)

Christ’s blood cleanses our consciences.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

            Do you ever wonder how many lambs, goats, calves and other animals were slaughtered at the tabernacle and temple over the fourteen hundred years of Israel’s worship before Jesus was nailed to the cross?  With sacrifices happening daily, and extraordinary numbers on special occasions, not to mention those special sacrifices for every male child born in Israel, the amount of animal blood shed throughout the years would have to be measured in Olympic swimming pool volumes rather than in gallons or liters.  It simply boggles my mind to think about all that blood flowing from slaughtered animals and huge amounts also being sprinkled on the people as well.  Our modern minds would likely be horrified at the scene.

Yet, even though those vast numbers of animals had given their lives (involuntarily, of course), none of those sacrifices actually cleansed anyone’s conscience.  How horrible that would all be except for one thing: they all pointed God’s people toward the one sacrifice that actually would make a difference in their eternal lives.  As the writer pointed out, “They are only bodily regulations about foods, drinks, and various washings, which were in force until the time of the new order.”

Of course, the modern reader might still shudder at the thought.  Some might protest, how could God require such a graphic display merely to teach the people what was to come?  Still, for both the Old Testament Israelites, and us also as well, now in the time of the new order, those sacrifices show us how dear the cost God paid so that Christ’s blood cleanses our consciences.

You see, so that you and I, and anyone else too, might enter God’s heaven, a sacrifice of supreme worth had to be made.  God had no need for those animal sacrifices.  Indeed, He had spoken through His prophet, “What do your many sacrifices mean to me?” says the Lord.  “I have more than enough rams as burnt offerings and enough fat from well-fed animals.” (Isaiah 1:11)  And through the psalmist He says, “I do not need to take a bull from your barn or goats from your pens, because every animal in the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand mountains.  I know every bird in the mountains, and everything that moves in the field is with me.  If I were hungry, I would not tell you, because the world is mine, and all that fills it.” (Psalm 50:9-12) 

Thus, God didn’t require all those sacrifices for His own benefit, but rather, so that the people would see the graphic cost of their sin.  But, the redemption price still had to be paid, for justice demands that the law be carried out.  “The wages of sin is death”—a decree that goes all the way back to the creation.  After Adam sinned, his every descendant was born in sin and lived in it, and every sinner would die.  To ensure that eternal death isn’t the only outcome, God sent Jesus to be the second Adam, who without any sin of His own, would die and suffer the pains of hell so that you and I could be set free from the curse. 

Sin had separated mankind from God.  The reality of our separation from God was visually displayed to all in the temple.  Before Jesus entered our world and gave His life on the cross, there was a curtain in the temple that barred the people from entering the most holy place.  Therefore, so that we who were sinners could enjoy peace with God, a Redeemer interceded on our behalf.  That Redeemer is Jesus.

Though the priests assigned as go-betweens for the people would offer sacrifices, prayers, and thanksgivings to the Lord in the courtyard and the holy place of the temple, “only the high priest would enter the second section of the tent, once each year, and not without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people committed in ignorance.  By this the Holy Spirit indicates that, while the first room of the tent existed, a way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed.”  The reality for people like you and me who often sin without even trying is that the curtain in the temple was a proclamation that we could never enter God’s presence in peace.

However, at the moment of Jesus’ death, that curtain that separated us from God’s presence was torn from top to bottom, signifying that our separation from God has been eliminated by the Son who came down from heaven.  The blood Jesus shed was enough.  The price had been paid in full so that not one more sacrifice would ever be required for the sins of mankind.  “When Christ appeared as the high priest of the good things that were coming, he went through the greater and more complete tent, which was not made by human hands (that is, it is not part of this creation).  He entered once into the Most Holy Place and obtained eternal redemption, not by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood.”  By His sacrifice and suffering and the shedding of His holy precious blood, Jesus fulfilled the prophecy of all the sacrifices of those previous fourteen hundred years.  By His suffering and death, Jesus had paid the full price of our reconciliation with God, and His resurrection from the grave and ascension into heaven testify forever after that Christ’s blood cleanses our consciences.

For you and me, the meaning of all that shedding of blood has changed.  No longer are we required to kill animals and sprinkle blood to cover our sins.  Jesus covered our guilt with His holy blood.  Instead of requiring a sacrifice from us, the blood of the sacrifice Jesus made is now poured out upon and in us through the eating and drinking of His body and blood in the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper.  This eating and drinking in not a command given to us that must be carried out so that we show God our faithfulness.  Rather, it is Jesus declaring His faithfulness to His Father, and His devotion to saving us for His Father’s house.

For this reason, the writer asks the rhetorical question, “Now if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkled on those who were unclean, sanctifies them so that their flesh is clean, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works, so that we worship the living God?”  The answer is infinitely!

What an amazing gift Jesus gives, that Christ’s blood cleanses our consciences.  The guilt and shame that so burdened our souls has been lifted.  The consciences troubled by sin are freed from the devil’s chains.  Again and again, Jesus comes to us in the bread and wine to show us the vivid reality that He died to make us counted as holy citizens of His heaven.  The ancient sacrifices of sheep and goats removed the outward appearance of sin, but only Jesus’ blood could truly cover the guilt of the world.  And that, dear friends, means that Christ’s blood cleanses our consciences.  You and I have been set free from the devil’s accusations and from our own troubled feelings and fears.

For the sake of the suffering and death of His Son, Jesus, the Father in heaven now counts those who believe in His Son as though they had never sinned at all.  On the mountain of transfiguration, the Father’s “voice came out of the cloud, saying, ‘This is my Son, whom I love.  Listen to him!’” (Luke 9:35)  Consequently, when Jesus says, “The Father loves the Son and has put everything in his hands.  The one who believes in the Son has eternal life,” (John 3:35-36) we better believe Him. 

That is the message and meaning we receive in the Lord’s Supper.  Every taste of the bread and every sip of the wine is participation with the body and blood of Jesus.  It is God’s way of putting Jesus personally into each believer. 

Just as Baptism is not merely an external cleansing of the body, but rather a “washing of rebirth and the renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs in keeping with the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:5-7)  So, in this Sacramental meal we are not fed merely a representation of what Jesus has done for us.  Rather, this Supper is real food and real medicine of immortality, given to cleanse our souls of all guilt and to strengthen our faith in Jesus as our Savior, Redeemer, and Lord.  As this writer asks, “how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works, so that we worship the living God?” 

Apart from Jesus, anything we might do or hope to do to please God is worthless.  Nothing we can do or say would prove that we deserve to be with the Lord in heaven.  However, having been cleansed of all guilt by the blood of His Son, God now welcomes us who believe into His heavenly mansions and praises those works we do out of trust in Him and faith in the sacrifice of His Son.  A living faith means a living service to our Lord.  Trusting the blood of Jesus poured out for you and me means that Christ’s blood cleanses our consciences.  Amen.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, forevermore.  Amen.